BOURBONNAIS – They’re no longer strangers. That time has come and gone.

For Mitchell Trubisky and his new head coach Matt Nagy, the introductions are in the past, with the future focused on building a solid on-field rapport. It’s one the Bears organization and fans hopes lasts for a while, but it still takes time to perfect.

Yet in just a few months, there is one thing that Nagy gathers about his franchise quarterback. It’s a characteristic that’s played a factor as Trubisky takes on his much more complex offensive system in 2018 – one where mistakes early on go side-by-side with successes.

“The one thing with him that you notice that even if he has a really good throw, it’s the same as if there is a poor throw. He’s just right to the very next play,” said Nagy of his quarterback’s ability to let plays – good or bad – pass quickly during training camp in Bourbonnais. “He might feel good about it, then after five seconds, ‘Ok, get the play call, get into that routine, then roll.'”

It’s one thing that Nagy notices about Trubisky, but the process to discover more about his quarterback in hopes helping him to better run the offense has only begun. On Thursday, they’ll do so for the first time in a game as Trubisky will take his first snaps of the preseason against the Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.

At this point, according to Nagy, he’s got about 65 percent of the playbook that he’s running against his own defense since the start of camp practices on July 20th.

“It’s hard because right now our defense is seeing a lot of the same plays, they’re seeing formation tendencies that we’re not scheming at all, “said Nagy. “They’re going to be tighter windows for him.”

That caused a few bumps in the road in some of the early training camp practices as Trubisky had a few of his passes intercepted by an experienced defense. Yet Nagy, in conjunction with offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich and quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone, was able to effectively communicate what was happening in film sessions.

According to the quarterback, it’s sped up improvement during the Bourbonnais scrimmages.

“Everything just slows down. You watch the film, you go back, and you don’t make the same mistake twice. You write it down, you study it, you find out the ‘Why’ for why you made the mistake – bad decision, bad read, bad footwork. For me it’s usually one of those three. Then just back and correct it,” said Trubisky. “We’re out here taking risks, figuring out what throws I can make, what throws maybe we should just hold off on and what routes and what works good and timing. Just go back, watch the film, don’t make mistakes.

“We’re out here getting better and testing it to the limit every day to see what I can do and see what this offense is capable of. We’ve definitely gotten better every single day.”

To do so, communication remains the key on the field. For Nagy, Helfrich, and Ragone, that starts with the simplest things. From delivering the play itself to breaking down what went right or wrong, it’s all about an understanding.

“If it’s choppy, if it’s not the same every single time, it’s different for him, than it’s harder for him,” said Nagy. “It’s got to be a routine to where, whatever that is, whether it’s the personnel first and then the formation, and then the play, or whether it’s a reminder first, then the personnel then the play.

“Whatever that is, then Mark and I will do the same thing since we’re continuing to kinda juggle that and go back and forth so that he hears the same thing regardless of what voice it is”

If that process is successful, then maybe this coach-quarterback combination will be one built to last.